Pirelli's new P6 and P7 tyres

High technology safety and performance with Pirelli's new P6 and P7 tyres

Barcelona, March 2001 - Sees the launch of P6 and P7, the new high performance tyres from Pirelli, utilising the most advanced materials and technology. Designed to equip a wide range of cars, from high class saloons to the latest generation sports cars, as well as MPVs, Pirelli P6 and P7 are available in a total of 40 sizes covering 70% of the car market.

Produced in Pirelli's factories in Italy, Spain, UK and Germany, using the most sophisticated process and control technology currently available to the tyre industry, P6 and P7 are to be widely distributed and will go on sale immediately in southern European markets. They will be sold throughout Europe and in Japan by the end of May. Sales are expected to reach 1.5 million units by the end of 2001 and stabilise at a regular 10 million tyres a year.

A large proportion of P6/P7 production will be assigned to Original Equipment sales, underlining how closely the tyres' development has been integrated with that of the car manufacturers. The new products have already been approved or are in the process of approval for key models of Audi, BMW, Mercedes-Benz, Volvo, Fiat, Jaguar, Peugeot and Ford.

Although having different performance criteria, P6 and P7 bring together the two faces of a single tyre family, conceived under the banner of safety: the emphasis for P6 is on comfort and low sound emission and, for P7, sports driving.
P6 is intended for high class saloons, MPVs and estate cars: ride and acoustic comfort, stress resistance, low rolling resistance, smooth running and evenness of wear are its distinctive qualities.
P7 has been designed predominantly for latest generation sports cars: performance in the wet, precise cornering, safety during braking and, above all, lifelong ability to maintain these characteristics introduces a new dimension to the performance tyre market.

Internet addresses on the sidewalls

The Internet addresses, www.pirellip6.com and www.pirellip7.com, are part of the respective sidewall inscriptions.

The web sites www.pirellip6.com and www.pirellip7.com, provide on-line information about P6 and P7 tyres as well as a dealer locator. An innovation to promote openness and the quality of Pirelli's relationship with its customers, the two sites incorporate a price list as well as announcements concerning competitions and promotions reserved for P6 and P7 buyers.

With a simple click, a navigator can also complete a form and join " Club Pirelli" . The sites currently feature a competition offering participants a trip for two to the Rally of Finland at the end of August, three " Safe Driving" courses at the Imola racetrack and 50 sets of tyres - needless to say, P6 and P7.

New generation tyres

P6 and P7 mark the introduction of a new generation of the P6000 family which was unveiled in 1995 and has been a reference point for the whole industry, both in the Replacement and Original Equipment markets. To date, P6000 and P6000 Powergy have achieved sales in excess of 40 million and are Pirelli's all-time most successful tyres in O.E. It is not surprising, therefore, that Pirelli has an overall 16% of Europe's HVZ car tyre market, with a progressively higher concentration in the ultra-high performance sector.

P6 and P7 will be positioned as " top-of-the-range" products, giving the Company an even greater competitive edge in a sector that has a double figure growth rate. The target is to build upon the success achieved by P6000 and P Zero, thereby reinforcing Pirelli's technological leadership and market share in the European V/Z market segment.

The P6 and P7 designations are a deliberate throwback to names that established Pirelli's reputation throughout the world of performance motoring: the first Pirelli P7, created in 1974 for the world championship-winning Lancia Stratos rally car, is considered the founder father of ultra-high performance car tyres derived from motor sport and has many world championship victories to its credit. The Pirelli P6, introduced in 1977, became the embodiment of the " ultra-low profile" amongst car manufacturers. A new and modern concept of " safety with high performance" evolved with the first P6 and P7: a philosophy that has remained ever since in the DNA of all Pirelli tyres.

Today, with the new P6 and P7, the " safety with high performance" concept becomes part of a new motoring generation. That of electronics, integrated control of the car's functions, global management of all the safety devices: control of the suspension, traction, stability and braking. P6 and P7 are the reliable solution to the demands of today's motoring.

Avant-garde design techniques

Pirelli P6 and P7 are the result of a single design effort, through which the Company decided to respond to the new demands of high performance motoring. That is how the STEP platform - Safety from Technical Engineering Profile - was born: a technological solution that provides for a particular type of profile, able to control deformation in the critical areas of the tyre, such as sidewalls and beads. The job of STEP is to guarantee optimum performance of the whole tyre structure and, above all, a better distribution of pressure in the road contact area. The impression at the wheel is one of great fluidity and of control, with a high degree of adaptability to the conditions in which the tyre is being used; qualities which remain constant throughout the tyre's life.

The development of the STEP technological platform also resulted in the adoption of the new " cap and base" low energy consumption tread compound: the " cap" mix, used for the upper strata of the tread, is 100% silica to guarantee grip in both wet and dry. The sub-strata or " base" of the compound is more rigid, and has been optimised to deliver the performance required of the tyre: softer to create the driving comfort of the P6, and more rigid to provide the sports driving grip of the P7.

The technological innovation, which has resulted in the P6 and P7, can also be seen in the work that has been carried out to lighten the tyres' structure - to the advantage of the whole wheel system - to improve the tread's footprint in contact with the road. The outcome is 10% more even wear, compared to tyres of the previous generation, which goes with a global improvement in rolling resistance. It is the patented Pirelli Ultra-Low Rolling Resistance system, which involves the belt as much as it does the sidewall compound and carcass, in a single system of great flexibility.

Pirelli P6, technological safety

Designed for MPVs and latest generation saloons, Pirelli P6 represents a choice clearly oriented towards comfort and quiet running. A safe braking tyre, that is sure footed on wet asphalt, quiet and resistant to all types of road stress. P6 integrates itself well
with all the latest car safety systems, inspiring driver confidence throughout its life.

The perception of reliability that P6 generates comes from a reduction in rolling resistance and an equalised distribution of stresses in the tread footprint area to ensure consistent contact pressure. The advantages are substantial: more grip and stability in the wet and dry, and less tyre fatigue, to the advantage of mileage.

The tread pattern of the Pirelli P6 has substantial blocks, set with curved sipes for increased grip during braking. Integrated with continuous ribs, the two combine to enhance comfort and evenness of wear. The continuous longitudinal channels amplify the effectiveness and rapidity of water expulsion from the footprint area, while the full central rib facilitates changes in trajectory, guarantees stability and improves manoeuvrability.

Pirelli P7: (enjoyment through technology)

P7 means effectiveness in the wet, lateral grip and decisive braking, while guaranteeing the quiet running and even wear essential to the most modern and sophisticated sports cars.

The tyre's outstanding performance values are the result of much work perfecting the footprint area, now bigger and more uniform to guarantee greater resistance to aquaplaning, and a more effective response on wet asphalt. In addition, by better distribution of pressure in the footprint area, the tyre optimises rolling resistance and even wear: a safer performance for excellent driving fluidity.

The global efficiency of P7 is focused on safety on wet surfaces and driving at the limit. Equally important is its ability to constantly maintain these characteristics; even after much of its tread life has been used.

P7 has an elegant asymmetric tread pattern, in which the substantial innermost tread blocks, designed to improve braking and driving comfort, combine with longitudinal and curved transverse grooves for faster water ejection from the footprint area.
The outermost section of the tread has a full rib and rigid shoulder blocks to lessen the slip angle and maximise road holding in corners.